Newfoundland’s New Fogo Island Inn

ByAmy Farley

It’s an incongruous sight: sleek white boxes on stilts above the rocky, windswept coast of a small island off northeastern Newfoundland. But the 29-room Fogo Island Inn is actually infused with the area’s DNA. It’s the vision of Zita Cobb, a local fisherman’s daughter turned tech entrepreneur, who launched an ambitious arts program on the island in 2006. For the new inn, Cobb tapped Newfoundland-born architect Todd Saunders, who also built the four on-site artists’ studios. The interiors were a collaboration between international designers (including the U.K.-based Ilse Crawford) and island craftspeople; quilters created bedspreads and other textiles, while boatmakers made furniture. Guests can learn about Fogo’s icebergs and humpback whale population from experienced guides, and mingle with residents at the restaurant and art gallery. What’s more, all profits go back to the community. In other words, it’s a white box with soul. $$$$